Powder Experiment Number One

I dipped a piece of hemp string in alcohol and poured some powder... laid the string down... lit the string... and hid behind a wall as the flame crawled along the string.

It flamed then POOFED!

I've always wanted to play with gun powder!  I have a whole pound of extremely dangerous pyrotechnic material at my disposal!

PS: I think I need nickel chromium wiring.  Normally, a person wants very low resistance in the wiring.  And if it's high they don't want it to melt (like a light bulb)... I need high resistance that just burns!